Run a new Docker container without getting inside Python interpreter

Question

I created a new container from a Python:3.8 image with this command: docker run -it --name first_container -v app_files:/appfiles python:3.8, and every time I have to run the interpreter within that container.

host@host_name:~$ docker run -it --name first_container -v app_files:/app_files python:3.8
Python 3.8.11 (default, Jun 29 2021, 19:54:56)
[GCC 8.3.0] on linux
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>>

I can only leave Python interpreter with exit() or ctrl + d. If I do that, I have to get back to the host@host_name, not root@first_container where I'd like to go.

>>> exit()
host@host_name:~$ docker ps -a
CONTAINER ID   IMAGE        COMMAND     CREATED          STATUS                     PORTS     NAMES
baf1d785d2ac   python:3.8   "python3"   3 minutes ago    Exited (0) 8 seconds ago             first_container

What I want is to run a new container and directly get into root@first_container to run something else. Then I can use the method from Regan to leave container without stopping it. Is this possible, or does this make any sense? (Still a newbie to docker)

A Docker container is a wrapper around a single process. You should probably set your image's CMD to actually launch the script, instead of starting a Python REPL. Once the process is exited, the container is done, and you can delete it (or docker run --rm ... to have it delete itself); there's no particular reason to "keep it alive" once the process it runs is done. — David Maze
– David Maze, Commented Jul 11, 2021 at 14:03
@DavidMaze Thank you for the concept. This was a practice of Docker tutorial, so I'm still not familiar with it. — p3nchan
– p3nchan, Commented Jul 11, 2021 at 14:10
@DavidMaze But is it OK to run/host a website for a single Docker container? In that case, the container must be running all the time. — p3nchan
– p3nchan, Commented Jul 11, 2021 at 14:12
Sure, that's a pretty common use case. The server will be the single process the container runs; as long as the server is still running, the container exists. There isn't usually an interactive shell of any sort involved in it. — David Maze
– David Maze, Commented Jul 11, 2021 at 16:40
@chenghuayang The command is what command the container ran when it started. If you look at the Dockerfile for the python:3.8 image, you can see that the last line is a COMMAND statement that runs python3, github.com/docker-library/python/blob/… — Hans Kilian
– Hans Kilian, Commented Jul 12, 2021 at 7:47

Hans Kilian · Accepted Answer · 2021-07-11 14:40:03Z

4

To override the default python command and run a shell instead, you specify the command after the image name. Like this

docker run -it --name first_container -v app_files:/appfiles python:3.8 /bin/bash

edited Jul 11, 2021 at 14:40

answered Jul 11, 2021 at 14:31

Hans Kilian

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2 Comments

p3nchan Over a year ago

What's the difference between /bin/bash and bash only?

Hans Kilian Over a year ago

/bin/bash is an absolute path. Only using bash requires that your path is set up correctly. Just bash will work and do the same in this case.

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